By Nathan Hunt
After being cancelled in 1988, despite still drawing large
audiences every week, World Of Sport Wrestling has finally hit our screens once
again, albeit at this stage, only for one night. Last week (31/12/2016) ITV
broadcast their first professional wrestling show for almost 30 years, with
stars of the past and present coming together to celebrate the rich legacy of
the historical wrestling programme as well as showcase the amazingly talented
wrestlers of a new generation. Anticipation was high amongst old-time fans and
those of the current UK scene alike, as everyone was excited to see what would
be in store on such a potentially huge platform. With the number of people
turned away from the tapings reportedly in the thousands, fans eagerly wanted
to be a part of the biggest night in British wrestling for quite some time and
the buzz on social media in the build-up to the broadcast was an almost
constant show of unity and support from all areas of the wrestling community.
Everyone expected big things and the show really didn’t disappoint.
The broadcast began with highlight packages paying homage to
the stars of the original World of Sport programme, such as Kendo Nagasaki, Big
Daddy and Johnny Saint as well as introducing the stars who would feature on
the revival show. WWE Hall of Famer, Jim Ross and perennial cornerstone of the
British wrestling scene, Alex Shane served as hosts and commentators, starting
the show with a reminder that this rebirth is almost three decades in the
making before moving on to the first contest.
We would be treated to further
video packages and interview clips throughout the broadcast which celebrated
the rich history of the show’s original run, with insights from Mark
‘Rollerball’ Rocco, Marty Jones, Klondike Kate and Johnny Saint, who were all
in attendance for the taping and shown in the audience several times. The initial
impression is certainly positive as ITV’s production values are obviously world
class, which meant that the show, vignettes, the title belt, graphics and
entrance way all bore the professional quality that is essential for the brand
to appear as a serious competitor in the increasingly competitive professional
wrestling market.
Starting with a bang, the inaugural match pitted Dave
Mastiff against Grado for the new World Of Sport Championship in a competitive
and entertaining bout, with Johnny Moss and Sha Samuels providing outside
interference on Mastiff’s behalf to lead him to the historic win. This led to
the introduction of World Of Sport’s General Manager, Mr Beesley, who ruled
that Mastiff’s tainted victory would be punished by having him defend the title
that same night against the winner of a Battle Royal. Purposefully reminiscent
of the infamous Big Daddy and Giant Haystacks feud in terms of the character
presentations (which was emphasised further on commentary), the match served as
a fitting bridge between the old school and new, incorporating that nostalgia
and familiarity with freshness and modernism to introduce all demographics to
the revamped product.
A four way ladder match between CJ Banks, Sam Bailey, Danny
Hope and Kenny Williams took the tempo up several notches with a cavalcade of
speed and high impact offense. While anyone familiar with the current UK scene
would have known what to expect from these awesome talents in this kind of
environment, this was clearly the match which stood out as the biggest
departure from the original WOS style and will have been a completely new
experience for the old-school audience who, in some cases, may have seen little
to no pro wrestling in the years since it was last shown on ITV.
Speaking of something the older audiences may not have seen
before, the next outing was the first ever women’s match in WOS history,
pitting Viper against Alexis Rose. Klondike Kate (who is looking great by the way, after losing a lot of weight ofver the last couple years) was again shown in the
audience, visibly enjoying the back-and-forth action as the two demonstrated
why the UK women are amongst the best in the world. Not afraid to throw down,
with a lot of hard hitting mixed with impressive displays of skill, power and
athleticism, the two put on a great showing for established and uninitiated
fans alike.
Ashton Smith & Rampage Brown would be teamed up against
Joe & Mark Coffey in an exciting and dramatic tag match, where Smith and Rampage
played an effective heel role and showed great chemistry. Later, Zack Gibson
and El Ligero would have an excellent hard-hitting, high-flying and technical
singles contest. Each match was a showcase of diverse styles and eclectic
offense, with throwbacks to stars of yesteryear mixed with modern styles and
expert storytelling.
The storyline of the show would then be fulfilled as the
Battle Royal was held to determine Mastiff’s number one contender. The match
featured some of the UK’s absolute best wrestlers and kept people guessing
throughout. Well constructed and
executed, it featured the very welcome surprise addition of Davey Boy Smith Jr
(aka DH/David Hart Smith from his time in WWE), before bringing the story to a
fulfilling conclusion by having Grado overcome the odds by winning the match
and then defeating Mastiff in the closing moments of the show. A short, but
well told story of redemption and overcoming odds was the theme for the
evening, which was fitting considering that it could well be seen as a metaphor
for the resurgence of British wrestling as a whole; after being defeated by a
huge juggernaut earlier on, the scene has valiantly fought its way back to
prominence.
All in all, the show was excellent for what it was – a
taster episode of a potential TV show to come, showcasing some great British
talents plying their craft in a fun, family-friendly environment on a
mainstream platform. While some
traditionalists have voiced criticism of the show’s editing and certain
elements of the production stylistically, as well as some murmurs of
disappointment about the bouts not being split into rounds, the overall
feedback has been amazingly positive – and rightly so. It was an excellent
first offering and it’s only natural that the production would be designed to
fit in amongst other mainstream entertainment shows on the channel, rather than
being shot purely as a sports broadcast. It makes the show more accessible to a
casual viewer to have the same kind of lighting, shots, colouring and editing
as their other programmes and it’s another way for the show to weave a degree of
familiarity into a new product. It makes viewers subconsciously feel
comfortable watching the show and emphasises that it belongs as a part of the
channel’s regular line-up. As for the in-ring action, no-one can find any fault
there, nor should they. The wrestlers on the show all did themselves and the UK
scene proud with their performances and deserve every accolade they receive.
There were several nods and acknowledgements to the traditional British style
without going so far as being an all-out tribute show and there was no
pandering to specific niche audiences, which would almost certainly have
alienated any new or younger fans.
Early indications showed an audience of approximately 1.2
million viewers tuned in to the show while it was being broadcast, with many
more watching the show later through DVR and OnDemand streaming through the ITV
website. Considering the timeslot being a competitive one on a day where
viewing figures are lower than your average Saturday (due to New Year
celebrations, being up against a football match etc), this number is very
promising and it will be interesting to see the final numbers over the next few
days. Hopefully this will be a significant enough share of the timeslot’s
viewership to prompt a permanent return so that the outstanding talent in the
UK will have a prominent platform to show why the British wrestling scene is
currently the envy of the world.
If you want to watch the show for yourself – which I would
highly recommend – then you can do so by clicking here.
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